Culture
In the rise of civilization, people exchanged ideas in sign language. Signs have met the need for communication through gestures. We are trying to imagine and guess what the meaning of those signs and symbols has evolved over thousands of years, what they mean today. In the Babylonian civilization, the Amorite king of the Old Babylonian Empire - aka the emperor Hammurabi, wrote down the rules of governance in cuneiform - and the meanings of those rules have been restored; however - the text of hieroglyphic inscriptions on mummy boxes and papyrus of Egyptian civilization has not been recovered even today. Research into what exactly these images mean is still ongoing. In the analysis of cave paintings, the issue of animal hunting and the magic beliefs of primitive people is also based on ideas. Man's progress in this world cannot be understood through tradition. In understanding civilization, we talk about the missing link. The subject of this missing link is most applicable to language. Many of the images that have circulated since ancient times carry meanings that are distinct from what we currently interpret them to imply. In need, faith, and ritual - various ethnic groups have generated countless images. We can obtain a sense of an array of emotions and the mindsets of the ancient world's inhabitants by reading their symbols carved on obelisks, reading cuneiform, Egyptian hieroglyphics, various images on totem poles, and the numerous codes of Hammurabi engraved on statues. Experiencing Sourav Chowdhury's print artwork, seasoned viewers will enjoy taking a trip to the state of symbols. For those who appreciate art, reading these images etched on etching plates doesn't require any prior knowledge. We all are familiar with every image. People in this nation read these images on a regular basis. The environment that surrounds us every day, the creatures-animals-insects that live here, and the tools and equipment we use for a variety of tasks in our everyday life - are all depicted in the creative space of Sourav.
Why did the artist organize such an encyclopedia by arranging images? We can deeply understand the nature of the artist's thoughts while searching for the answer to the question of what kind of creative urge inspired him to create art by arranging hundreds of images. The name of Sourav's image series is 'Eternal Existence' - in Bengali, it can be called 'Sashwato Sattwa' (Eternal Entity) or 'Chirantan Sattwa' (Eternal Being). One can easily understand what the artist wants through this name. The stream of human life alongside diverse animals and experienced materials of diverse needs on water and land, keeps us constantly elevated to the idea and understanding of our perpetual or eternal realm. We receive a taste of eternity in the things we read with our eyes. because we are unable to determine the beginning of the pace at which our lives are currently moving through time. Additionally, there is optimism because we love to live and enjoy life, which keeps us moving forward. Time cannot be tied down, it is moving with the beckoning of infinity. This is why, the artist has titled his time like this. Sourav's feeling has struck a chord with many creative minds and they have expressed it through artistic manners and creations.
Poet Jibanananda Das recited the lives of the people of Nisarang in Bangladesh and said, "All these days forever/ Assyria is dust today, Babylon is ashes."
There are two large vertical versions of Sourav's artworks which can be described as picturesque maps of the local life of Bangladesh. If someone cherishes understanding art, and even if it is an illiterate person, that enthusiastic art admirer will understand the meaning of the mind and intellect of the Bengali people by going through these two artworks aligned from top to bottom, or from bottom to top, or from right to left one after the other. Looking at the work of this artist, we get the impression that he wants to free the audience from the shackles of letters or words by allowing them to explore the vast glory of the image, freeing them from the bondage of letters or words. The same level of concentration is required for miniature-like artworks as for texts. One has to dive deep towards not only a separate artwork but the panels he created with multiple artworks one after another, to comprehend the intrinsic importance of Bengali civilization. The speech, the conversation doesn't end with just a miniature image reading. At the top of the columned artwork, there is a giant owl with enormous wings, and a snake is held by the owl's legs. Then there is the peacock-shaped 'Morpankhi' (Mayurpankhi) boat. Many boatsmen are rowing, and royal passengers with regal expressions are seated amidships. Perhaps the snake-hunter owl appeared as a symbol of goodwill and protection. Couples and royal passengers like kings and queens are giving messages of auspicious festivals from that boat. However, the artist rejected this simple reading of the narrative by painting Gazi's bold face on the tiger's back. As this theme of 'Gazir Pat' (a traditional form of scroll painting) dominates the miniature artworks, the presentation of the artist's speech gives birth to a new thought in the mind of the audience. It is simple to infer that Sourav has a specific interest in the publicity of 'Patachitra'.
In another vertically standing composition, the artist has brought out the theme of Bengal folklore in the light of his special intelligence. This time, there are two images under the enormous owl which is also Goddess Lakshmi's vehicle on the route towards flying to the top; in one, there are two women husking paddy, and in the other, the farmer is cultivating the land with a plough - however, the cows with their wings, naturally represents a mythological subject. In the middle of the image, there is the mother doll; this mother figure is also a part of Bengal folklore. The character is holding her child on one shoulder, a pitcher on the other. There are many other images throughout the body of this folkloric matriarch. Additionally, the farmer in this image with the plough on his shoulder, dominates the smaller images in a relatively large area. The objective of the artist to depict matriarchy, agrarianism, etc. in a unique arrangement has been made quite evident. Here, the farmer's visage is a puppet as well. In this way, the artist has represented Bengali folklore in various refinements. Due to the appearance of the barn owl in the artwork, it seems that the artist is praising the civilization of Bengal. The two standing images make sense to me as monuments or obelisks bearing various Bengal cultural icons and folklore symbols.
The composition of the film demands a special interpretation of Saurabh's artwork. Not only the size of the vertically standing images but also in the circular range, many panels have been made, cut in space and painted small images on the grids inside those circles, maintaining the fine line. Sometimes you think of the zodiac when you see this picture, sometimes it feels like it's a religious thing, as if it's a protector. Fish, tigers, and ducks are all flowing in circles. That being said, it's not folk art nor the Patachitra; it also contains a terracotta plaque image from the ancient civilization of Bengal. The picture of a duck with the garland on its lips in particular has been brought up often.
Not all images have a simple meaning. Sourav has shown the imagery of idioms and proverbs in some of these images. However, the combined depiction of Gazi riding a tiger and the Mughal emperor on an elephant adds a sense of conviviality to the artwork. He painted portraits of the rulers and artists of the time, imitating Mughal painting. A nimbus surrounds the emperor's head, and there is a roaring tiger, an owl fluttering its wings, as well as a variety of other birds. These painted depictions of animals and birds appear to have staged a theatrical play around the framed portrait of the king. In the end, these images are neither tigers, owls, peacocks, nor emperors; they merely read history to us in dramatic waves in isolated accompaniments immersed in the whirlwind of time. Sourav's artwork has a unique representation of the subject in the depiction of subtle forms. It was this clairvoyant mind that led him to meditate on the language of Mughal miniatures and various aspects of folk art. The new expressive image that has been refined by his artistic consciousness and mixed with the elements of diverse sources with each other, can be considered a new Mythopoeia - which Sourav Chowdhury has illustrated through the deconstruction of the existing mythology. When the patterns of civilization burn in the creative inferno and take on new expressions, they cannot be read into another linear narrative. In this artist's work, many layers of thought intersect each other, creating new expressions. Therefore, through the combination of emotion and intellect, the audience might get engrossed in understanding the underlying message of Sourav's artwork.
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